Chesley Sully Sullenberger, Family and Crew Honored at Obama Inauguration and SuperBowl

We know what a new hero is all about. Pilot Sullenberger saved 155 passengers. He has been honored by President Bush, President Obama and the Superbowl organizers, the NFL.

The hero of the 'Miracle on the Hudson' received quite a Super ovation, as US Airways pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger and the rest of the crew for Flight 1549 were honored before Sunday's Super Bowl between Pittsburgh and Arizona for helping rescue 150 passengers after an emergency landing in New York's Hudson River.

New Google Application Is to Be Launched: Google Ocean

Gore will be present at the launching of Google Ocean today. With the release of this new application, Googlers and regular people will be able to travel under the ocean from the comfort of their seats. So far, very few people have been able to see the floor of the ocean.

With this new application, we can see the hills and mountains of the ocean. We can explore the beauty of this unknown world.

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Vietnam: Land of Magic, Beauty, Riches, Hard Work and Beautiful People Vietnamese Want Education, Growing Economy, Employment Opportunities

Vietnam: Land of Magic, Beauty, Riches, Hard Work and Beautiful People

Vietnamese Want Education, Growing Economy, Employment Opportunities and Consumer Goods such as Apple iPhone 3g

A recent trip to Vietnam has helped me realize the economic rise and fall of this important Asian country.

Who has not heard a recent story about Hanoi, Vietnam's stock market and growing economy? Most of you have read about the recent efforts by many countries including ours to renew contact with the Asian country with the highest diaspora in the States, specifically California. For that matter, we have Little Saigon in the Golden State. Just a few years ago, many Vietnamese were leaving Australia and the U.S. to go back home to invest in the soaring stock market, real estate market. The economic growth was a sure thing. Exports were booming. These expatriates returned to build and brought with them lots of cash. Foreign investment was also flooding in. With all of these economic activities, the country was admitted to the World Trade Organization.

It was with fanfare that millions of Vietnamese celebrated the adoption of capitalist ideas by the communist country. The country is waking up to the marvels and pitfalls of the capitalist system. These days, workers are protesting for higher wages. Inflation has been eating up their incomes. Shares have plunged. People are losing their precious, hard-earned money. The hope of those who expected to strike it rich is being dashed. The good thing is that many of the factors that attracted more than $22 billion in foreign investment to Vietnam are still in place: emerging middle class, adoption of western economic reforms, half of Vietnam's 84 million citizens are under age 30, importance of education and literacy programs, demand for consumer goods and relatively cheap labor. The strength of the economy rests on the shoulder of the young population.

The growth that Vietnam knows has been fueled by young entrepreneurs creating and investing in the new economy. At the same time, the Old economy was present with the booming telecommunications, manufacturing and construction industries. Many U.S. companies wanted to have a presence in Hanoi. Starbucks wanted to grow and get its coffee from Vietnam. Exports of clothing, shoes, rice and coffee brought in the much needed cash for many retailers and farmers. Little did most Vietnamese that this growth would be stunted by the soaring food and oil prices all over the world. Inflation is a major problem right now according to a Vietnamese Restaurant owner who was seeking to open a sister restaurant over there. The government is in control and is paying attention to the recent problems.

In the meantime, if you want to vacation in Vietnam, you will have lots of fun. The people are nice. They want you to visit again. Tourism is very important to the overall economy too. If you decide to venture out, away from rated restaurants, make sure to take care of your water. In the countryside, you may catch worms if the water was not boiled. Two college students who vacationed in Vietnam tell of their trouble with worms when they got back to the U.S. One of them made the mistake of eating unwashed local fruits. He could not turn down the large variety of tropical fruits he was being offered on his walks in the village.

Airlines Are Increasing Fees on Baggage, Cutting Down Jobs and Laying Off Workers

Cash-strapped Airlines Are Increasing Fees, Laying Off Pilots, Workers and Cutting Hundreds of Flights at Most Airports

From FYI to LAX, San Francisco International Aiport, San Jose airport and elsewhere, the high fuel prices bring bad news to the CEOs of most airlines companies. At the same time, travelers without extra cash are being asked to pay higher fees on local and international flights for extra luggage. Many airlines have resulted to cutting down a number of flights at the local airports. The cuts announced thus far will be felt at the Los Angeles International Airport. According to Airline industry database company Innovata, the number of flights scheduled out of LAX has been reduced.

In front of the new economic reality, American Airlines and other companies are cutting down flights. American Airlines plans to eliminate 86 arrivals and departures at the LAX per week in November. Delta plans to eliminate 68. United Airlines plans to cut the flights down to 266 flights. LAX can no longer count on the landing fees to fund its expansion. The cuts will be felt down at the local regional airports too.

Delta Airlines Raises Fees on Second Bag

Delta Airlines has just announced that it is raising the fees on your second bag. It will go from $25 to $50.

Fees
For tickets purchased on or after July 31, 2008, for travel on or after August 5, 2008, the baggage fees will be changing. See below for exact fees. No more than four checked bags will be allowed in all Delta Connection® carriers.
You'll be charged an excess baggage fee each time you go over any one of the free allowances.
For example, if you have an extra piece of baggage that goes over the weight limit and the size limit, then you'll be charged 3 times:
once for the extra bag,
once for going over the size limit, and
once for going over the weight limit.
Fees are for each additional bag, each way.
The fees listed below apply to all areas of travel, however some areas may have additional restrictions.
Current baggage fees for passengers who purchased tickets before July 31, 2008:
Quantity

Amount Fee
Travel within the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico Bag 2
$25
Bags 3, 4, and 5
$80 each
Bags 6, 7, and 8
$110 each
Bags 9 and 10
$180 each
Travel outside the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico Bags 3, 4, and 5 $150 each
Bags 6, 7, and 8 $300 each
Bags 9 and 10 $600 each

Weight

Amount Fee
51–70 pounds $80 each
71–100 pounds $150 each
Over 100 pounds not permitted

Size

Amount Fee
63–80 inches—total of length plus width plus height $150 each
Over 80 inches—total of length plus width plus height
not permitted

Baggage fees for passengers who purchased tickets on or after July 31, 2008, for travel on or after August 5, 2008
Quantity

Amount Fee
Travel within the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico Bag 2
$50
Bag 3
$125
Bags 4—10
$200 each
Travel outside the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico Bag 2 no fee
Bag 3 $200
Bags 4 & 5 $350
Bags 6—10 $600

Weight

Amount Fee
51–70 pounds for travel within the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico $90 each
51–70 pounds for travel outside the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico $150 each
71–100 pounds for travel within the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico $175 each
71–100 pounds for travel outside the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico $300 each
Over 100 pounds not permitted

Size

Amount Fee
63–80 inches—total of length plus width plus height $175 each
Over 80 inches—total of length plus width plus height
not permitted

Hole in Qantas Airlines

A hole the side of a sedan was ripped from a cargo area under the business class area of the cabin, officials said. The plane, a 747-400 operating as Qantas Flight 30 from Melbourne to Hong Kong, landed safely, and no one was hurt.

"The hole appeared to encompass a part of the plane called a fairing, which is meant to smooth out the surface of the fuselage and reduce drag. Fairings, which are installed on various parts of an aircraft, do not normally suffer metal fatigue, said Robert Mann Jr., an industry consultant based in Port Washington, N.Y.

That raised the question of whether the aircraft might have been damaged on the ground or from inside the cargo compartment, possibly when bags were being loaded, Mr. Mann said."

In-flight Entertainment Offered by Delta Airlines

Domestic
We offer the AVOD product to customers on most flights 4+hours to and from New York City, Boston, Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City and Atlanta.

Flights between Los Angeles and Honolulu or Maui also feature Delta on Demand.

International
We offer Delta on Demand to all customers traveling in the BusinessElite cabin, regardless of destination.

It’s also available to customers in the Economy cabin traveling between Atlanta* and Tokyo, Seoul, Shanghai, Tel Aviv, Dubai, Moscow, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bogotá, Quito, Guayaquil, Paris/CDG, Copenhagen, Dakar, Dublin, Frankfurt, Sao Paulo, Vancouver, Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg, London/LGW, Madrid, Munich and Milan.

And if you’re traveling in Economy between New York/JFK* and Antigua, Shannon, Guatemala City, Edinburgh, Manchester, Malaga, Mexico City, Lyon, London/LGW, Paris/CDG, Punta Cana, Puerto Vallarta, Santo Domingo, Santiago (STI), Frankfurt, Georgetown, Brussels and Mumbai…you’ll also be on aircraft with Delta on Demand.

It’s available to all customers traveling between Cincinnati* and Amsterdam…to all customers traveling between Los Angeles* and Cancun and to all customers traveling between Hartford* and Cancun.

*And here’s the fine print…Routes and Aircraft subject to change

Fast Facts

Delta on Demand offers each customer their own personal, 7” wide-screen display and a choice of up to 28 new and classic films, 60 hours of HBO on Demand, more than 3,000 mp3s across 14 music categories, a suite of 12 video games and a real-time moving map;

The system features 18 channels of live satellite television on 97 Boeing 737, 757 and 767 aircraft flying domestic routes (usually on flights of 4 hours or more), while customers flying on transoceanic routes on Delta’s Boeing 757, 767 and 777 fleet enjoy up to 25 hours of on-demand television across a broad range of genres.

Our new 777-200LR ultra-long range aircraft feature larger 9” screens in Economy and 10.6” screens in BusinessElite. 200 movie choices are offered across a broad range of genres. The 777LR fleet also features 100 hours of HBO on Demand; more than 150 TV and short subject programs; more than 4,000 mp3s; 40 music videos, including 20 from Bollywood artists; a dedicated children’s area called “FlyKids;” and a suite of 12 video games and language tools. Additionally, BusinessElite customers have access to exclusive games not available in the Economy cabin.